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Cards purchase Rob Johnson, release Ty Wigginton

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Press Release |

ST. LOUIS, MO., July 9, 2013 - The St. Louis Cardinals announced today that they have purchased right-handed hitting catcher Rob Johnson from Memphis (AAA) and granted veteran infielder Ty Wigginton his unconditional release.

Johnson, 30, was batting .236 (46-for-195) with 7 home runs and 32 RBI in 59 games for the Triple-A Redbirds. Following a slow start to his season, Johnson has hit at a .264 clip (37-for-140) with 5 HR's and 29 RBI over the past two-plus months. He was batting .284 (18-for-67) against left-handed pitchers.

Johnson, a former 4th round draft pick (2004) of the Seattle Mariners, owns a career batting mark of .201 with 8 HR's and 62 RBI in 245 games with Seattle (2007-10), San Diego (2011) and the New York Mets (2012). He batted .250 in 17 games for the Mets last season and caught the Major League debut (July 26) of Matt Harvey when he fanned 11 batters in 5.1 innings.

The University of Houston alum threw out 29 pct. (12-of-41) of base-stealers at Memphis and he's throw out 27 pct. of base-stealers during his Major League career.

Wigginton, 35, appeared in 47 games for the Cardinals this season, batting .158. He is a veteran of nine-plus seasons in the majors.

Johnson is expected to be in uniform for tonight's series opener with Houston and will wear uniform number 32.